Evaluating persistent vacancies

When a unit sits, the cause is usually one of three things: price, presentation, or operations. Change one variable at a time, or you will never know what worked.

Price

Compare asking rent against comparable units actually available today, not against what the unit leased for last year. If showings are happening but applications are not, price is the first suspect. Asking rent should be labeled as asking; it is a hypothesis to test, not an achievement.

Presentation

Listings with few, dark, or outdated photos underperform regardless of price. Check that the listing photos match the unit's current condition, that the headline mentions what matters to the likely renter, and that the listing is complete. In shared or co-living formats, list the room and the shared space honestly; surprises at showings waste both sides' time.

Operations

Inquiry response time, showing availability, and application turnaround are operations, and they show up directly in days on market. An inquiry that sits unanswered for two days is a lost lead. Track three numbers for a month: time to first response, showings per inquiry, and applications per showing. The weak number points at the cause.

When it is the building

If price, presentation, and operations all test well and the unit still sits, look at the building: curb appeal, common areas, noise, parking, or a reputation issue among renters. Those are slower to fix but worth knowing about early.